Improvement in harvesters



UNITED STATES PATENT OEFrcE.

E. P. RUSSELL, OF MANLTUS, NEV YORK.

IMPROVEMENT IN HARVESTERS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 50,959, dated November14, l.

To @ZZ whom, t may concern:

Be it known that I, E. P. RUSSELL, of Manlius, in the county of Onondagoand State of New York, have invented an Improvement in Harvesters; and Ido hereby declare that the following is af'ull, clear, and exactdescription thereof, reference being had to the acco1npanying drawings,making apart of this specification, in which- Y Figure l is a sideelevation, showing the improved mode of attaching the cutting apparatusto the frame of the machine. Fig. 2 is an elevation of' the rear end ofthe machine. Fig. 3 is a top view. Fig. 4 shows the spring draw-bar intwo positions. Fig. 5 is a perspective view 'of the shoe, to whichthecutting apparatus is attached.

Similar letters of' reference indicate correspending parts in theseveral figures.

This invention is intended to dispense with the double-rule joint, ormany joints, in the attachment of the cutting apparatus ofharvesting-machines to the frames thereof, and at the same time toprovide for obtaining all the motions which are afforded by the doubleor compound joint attachment, such as elevating and depressing thecutting apparatus bodily, allowing the latter to rise and fall or fioatover uneven surfaces, and also allowing the cutting apparatus to bevibrated and thrown up in, a vertical position or folded over the frameof' the machine.

To ef'fect these objects, the nature of my invention consists inattaching1 the cutting appa ratus to a draw-bar or its equivalent, whichhas a rigid fastening to the frame of the machine, and which possessesiiexibility or elasticity in such degree as will admit of' its free endbeing vibrated according to the amount of motion which is required of'the cutting apparatus in elevating it bodily from the ground, orallowing it to accommodate itself to uneven surfaces, as will behereinafter described.

My invention' further consists in attaching the rear end of the cuttingapparatus or the rear end of the drag-bar thereof to the frame of themachine by means ofl a spring-bar or a sliding bar in such manner that afirm lateral brace will be secured for the cutting apparatus withouthinging said bar to the frame of the machine', as will be hereinafterdescribed.

My invention also consists in providing for tus much faster than theinner end thereof during the act of raising the cutting apparatus bodilyfrom the ground, at the same time stiffening the joint connection andaffording a firm support for said parts against lateral displacement, aswill be hereinafter described.

stand my invention, I will describe its construction and operation.

A represents the frame ofthe machine, which may be constructed oflongitudinal and transverse beams secured together and mounted upontransporting-wheels B B, as shown in the drawings, or in any othersuitable manner.

C represents a met-al shoe, which is cast with elevations a a to receivethrough them the longitudinal portion of' a drag-bar, and also withoverhanging lips b b and a guide or shoulder, c, for receiving the innerend of the sickle and its bar and keeping these parts down in place.There is also cast with the shoe C a projection, d, having a recess init adapted for receiving the inner end of the finger-beam C, as shownclearly in Fig. 5. The rear lug, c', of this shoe C has an oblong slotthrough it, and the lug a has a tapering hole through it, the objectbeing to allow the rear end of the shoe to rise or fall upon its bar andaccommodate itself touneven surfaces in the ground.

D represents the drag-bar to which the cutting apparatus is pivoted,which bar consists of a flat elastic portion, c, extending diagonallyacross the frame of' the machine, and a round portion, e, extending in aline parallel with the length of the frame A, as shown in- Figs. l, 2,and 3. 'The forward end of the spring or fiat portion of bar D isrigidly secured to a xed plate, j", which is bolted to that side of theframe A which is opposite to the side on which the cutting apparatus isattached. Fig. 4 shows one mode of securing the forward end of the bar Drigidly to the supporting-frame A. rlhe shoe C is slipped upon thelongitudinal portion, e', of the bar D so that its fmger-bar C will beat or nearly at right angles to the side of the frame A, and this shoeis held in place by means of a nut on the and 2.

E represents a flat bar, which may be made of spring metal or not, asmaybe desired, and which has au eye formed on one end to receive the rearend of the drag-bar D, to which latter To enable others. skilled in theart to under y rear end of said portion e', as shown in Figs. lv

. in Fig. 2, in which figure it will be seen that the spring EZ and barE form a V and sustain it is suitably secured. The oppositeend'of bar Eis passed loosely through an oblong slot through a plate, yE, and hassecured to it a spring-bar, E2, which is secured rigidly to thelongitudinal beam of frame A that is on the right-hand side of theframe. The inclined bar Eis prevented from slipping out ofthe slotthrough plate E by means of a lug, i', shown the rear end of thedrag-bar D against lateral strain. The spring l2 serves as a brace andalso as a means of attaching the rear end of the drag-bar D to the frameof the machine with out the employment of a hinge or articulating joint.f

' On the rear side ofthe vertical projection a is a lug, g, whichisintended to serve in conjunction with a projection, g, as a means forpreventing the' outer end of the cutting apparatus from dropping downwhen the cutting ap` paratus is elevated bodily from the ground by meansofthe lever G and chains 71y 7L. During the operation of .cutting theparts g and g do not come into contact. This only occurs when the rearend of the shoe C bears upon the drag-bar. rIhe chain h is attached atits lower end to the drag-bar at a point near the projection a', and theupper end of this chain is attached to a claw or hook, j, which ispivoted to the short arm of a rectangular lever, G, that has itsbearings upon the frame A, as shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3. The chain h isattached to the bar D, directly in front of the projection a of theshoe, and' also to a claw or hook, j, on the frame A. Both chains can belengthened or shortened at pleasure.

H represents what I term a gag-bar, which is connected at its lower orouter end to the the drag-bar D, between the bar E and projection c onshoe C, and at its upper end to a pendant, J, by means of a pin, s,which plays in a transverse slot in said pendant. A spring, t, in frontof the pendant presses against the bar H, and keeps its pin s in itsslot.

The object of using the bar H is to stiffenR the joint of the cuttingapparatus with its bar D, and to prevent the inner end of the cuttingapparatus from being raised, when lever G is used in a vertical line,the effect being to throw the heel of the shoe outward and therebycausing the outer end of the cutting apparatus to be lifted faster andhigher than the inner end thereof. Vithout suclr a bar the cuttingapparatus would be lifted bodily in a horizontal plane.

From the above description it. will be seen that I attach the cuttingapparatus to the frame of the machine by means of but one articulatingjoint and spring-rods. The joint admits of the cutting apparatusvibrating and accommodating itself to the inequalities in the surface ofthe ground, andthe springbars serve to allow the cutting apparatus to beelevated or depressed.

The spring portion of the drag-bar is not materially weakened byflattening it, so that it does not serve as a brace, nor is the spring'F2 weakened in such manner as to impair it for the office which it hasto perform.

If desirable, the barE may be made of spring metal and rigidly attachedto the frame ofthe machine like the bar D; but Ipreferallowing alongitudinal sliding movement to bar E, in raising or lowering-thecutting apparatus, as the latter raises much easier and higher than itotherwise would. The plate or bracket E, through which the spring E2 andbar E play 'is intended merely to preventA these bars from swaying aboutin lifting the cutting apparatus.

'Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is- 1 l. The angular diagonal spring draw-barD e, serving as a hinge for the cutting apparatus to turn 011, as aiieXible brace and supportv for said apparatus to rest and move uponbodily, and also as a draw-bar, substantially as described.

2. The V-spring E E2, constructed and applied to the harvester-frame andcutting apparatus, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. The combination and arrangement of the spring E E2, angular hingingand bracing spring draw-bar, and the cutting apparatus of the harvester,substantially as and for the purpose set forth. l

4. The combination of the bar H, arranged and operating as described,with the cutting apparatus, and devices upon which said apparatus issuspended, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

5. The bar H, attached to the hinge of the cutting apparatus by one ofits ends, and f1tted to a slotted plate, J, by its other end, andoperating in the manner described, all for the purpose set forth.

E. I). RUSSELL.

Vlitnesses:

JOSEPH BAKER, W. W. VVILLIAMs.

